I just finished watching a TED speech by Aimee Mullins about being labeled “disabled.” For those of you who are not familiar with Aimee, she was born without some of the bones in her lower legs and feet, and as a result her legs had to be amputated just below the knees at a young age. During the TED talk, she read the entry for ‘disabled’ from a 1980’s thesaurus, which included words like ‘useless’ and ‘mutilated.’ She went on to redefine the true definition of disabled as having a crushed spirit and losing hope. Aimee has never allowed her condition to do that to her. Continue reading Being ‘Disabled’
Tag Archives: Chronic Illness
Plans for the future…
I was on the East Coast for the holidays. I spent Christmas with my family in New Jersey, and then I traveled down to West Virginia where there was a Healthcare Justice Gathering at Gesundheit, Patch Adam’s land where he’s going to build a free hospital. The experience gave me the chance to think about what I can do to improve access to healthcare in this country, and also about how I want to build community. Since I’ve gotten back though, I’ve spent most of my time in bed with fatigue and muscle spasms. Because I’m an overachiever (and an INFP), all I can think about is how much I want to do to save the world. I fear though that instead, I am going to be this tired for the rest of my life and not be able to do anything. Continue reading Plans for the future…